Ben Hill Griffin Jr. (October 10, 1910 – March 1, 1990) was a prominent American businessman, citrus producer, politician, and philanthropist who was a native and resident of Florida.
Griffin is the subject of the final chapter of John McPhee's work of creative nonfiction Oranges.
Griffin was born during a hurricane in the former town of Tiger Bay, near Fort Meade, Florida.
In 1933, Griffin left the University of Florida, after three years and without earning a degree, to find a job during the Great Depression.
[5] Alico, Inc. became a publicly traded corporation engaged in citrus fruit, sugarcane and sod production, cattle ranching, and forestry.
[21] In 1998, a panel of Florida historians and other consultants named Griffin one of the fifty most important Floridians of the twentieth century.